Winding machine



April 28, 1942. H. PHILIPPI WINDING MACHINE Filed June 30, 1959 a INVENTOR Hermann Phz'lz'ppi WITNESSES:

I ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 1942 WINDING momma Hermann Philippi, Berlin-Spandau. Germany,

assignor to Westinghouse Electric 6; Manufactui'ing Company, East Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application June 30, 1939, Serial No. 282,184

. In Germany August 13, 1938 Claims. My invention relates to a winding machine and more specifically to a control system which posed for winding a material with substantially constant tension. For example, it has beenlproposed to measure the current or power of a motor which drives the winding drum and use it for regulating the speed thereofi With this control, however, an insumcient accuracy in maintaining substantially constant tension is secured. at

-An object of my invention is to provide a material winding machine and a control system therefor, the latter being effective to select any tension in the material and vto maintain the tension in the thread which is being wound substantially constant.

Another object of my invention is to provide a speed control system for effecting substantially constant tension in the material being wound, which speed control system is simple, reliable in operation and inexpensive to manufacture and install.

Other objects and advantages will become more apparent from a study of the following specification when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic showing of a thread winding machine or slasher" embodying the control scheme in accordance with my invention;

' threadZ is unwound. Coupled to the shaft of the warp beam i is abraking generator 3. The

thread after leaving the warp beam partially encircles a roller 4 which is yieldingly held in contact with, and is driven by, the thread. After leaving the roller 4, the thread is saturated with starch or other suitable slash liquor in a slash liquor containing tank 5. Thereafter, the thread is passed through a drier comprising a pluralityl of steam rollers 6 partially about another roller 1, which is driven similar to roller 4,

beam 8. {The loom beam 8 is driven by an electric motor 9 having a field coil 10, the latter being energized by a suitable electric supply line Ll, L2. The. roller 4 drives an adjustable ratio transmission mechanism -II which comprises essentially a pair of oppositely disposed substantially cone shaped rollers having encircled therearound a belt i2 which is shiftable in either direction, as shown by the arrow, by any suitable means (not shown). The opposing beveled gears of a diilerential mechanism I 3 are respectively driven by rollers 4 and]. 'One of the opposing bevel gears is driven through transmission mechanism II and beveled gears l4 and the other through beveled gears IS. The casing of difierential mechanism I3 is rigidly connected to a beveled gear i6 which drives a cooperating beveled gear I! and worm gear l8 which, in turn, drives a movable contact arm I! of a rheostat 20 in either one direction or the other, depending on the relative speedsoi beveled gears i4 and i5. In other words, if the corresponding elements of beveled gears II and ii are wound in opposite directions at the same speed, beveled gear ii of the differential mechanism will not rotate in either direction, hence the worm gear l8 and the contact arm I! will remain stationary. However, shouldthe speed of one of the cooperating elements of beveled gears l4 and I5 become unequal though still opposite to the other, then beveled gear it of the diiferential will be driven in a particular direction, thereby efiecting movement of contact arm I9. For a practical example, it will be noted that as loom beam 8 increases in diameter due to the increased amount of thread being wound thereon,- the linear speed of the thread as it is traveling from roller 1 to loom beam 8 will increase, hence roller 1 will be driven at an increasingly greater speed. On the other hand, due to the decreasing diameter of the warp beam or unwinding roll I, the linear speed of the thread, as it contacts roller 4, will gradually decrease. Hence, from these two conditions, it will be noted that the beveled gears l5 will be driven at a greater speed than beveled gears H (but, of course, in the opposite direction). Therefore, it will effect rotary movement of beveled gear ii of the differential which, in turn, will effect movement of the contact arm is in such a direction as to change the field strength of field coil ill of motor 9 so as to decrease the speed thereof, thus compensating for the abnormal increase of linear speed of the thread which and finally is wound on a winding drum or loom is partially encircling roller 1 as compared with the thread which is partially encircling roller 4. Therefore, it will be seen that the ratio a change in the speed ratio of the, transmission,

as is well known to those skilled in the art.

Fig. 2 shows a modification which is similar in many respects to Fig. 1, except that feeler rollers 2i and 22 are yieldingly held in contact with Warp beam I and loom beam 8, respectively, and are, therefore, frictionally driven thereby. Feeler rollers 2| and 22 are effective to drive belts 23 and 24, respectively, which, in turn, through suitable pulleys, drive beveled gears similar to I 4 and IE (not shown) which, in turn, drive the differential mechanism Hi. The remaining elements of Fig. 2 correspond exactly to those in Fig; 1, and are denoted by the same reference numerals, hence further description thereof is deemed unnecessary.

Fig. 3 shows a second modification similar to Fig. 2 and diifering essentially in the provision of a pair of press rollers'25 which are yieldably held in contact with the thread 2 and are driven thereby and which by any suitable means (not shown) drive beveled gears 26 and, in turn, a transmission mechanism H and differential mechanism l3. The remaining elements correspond exactly to those described in regard to Fig. 1, hence further explanation is deemed unnecessary.

Although a thread winding machine has been described, it will be apparent that my invention would be equally applicable to a machine used for winding any material such as paper, sheets of all sorts, etc., wherein it is desired to maintain substantially constant tension in the material being wrapped, aswill readily appear. It is also apparent that instead of the mechanical diiferential, an electrical or hydraulic differential may be used.

I am, of course, aware that others, particularly after having had the benefit of the teachings of my invention, may devise other devices emdisposed between one roller and the differential transmission means for selectively adjusting the linear speed ratio of said unwinding and winding material, and speed regulating means driven either clockwise or counterclockwise by said differential means depending on the sign of the speed difference between the element, or portion, of the diiferential transmission means driven by one of said pair of rollers and the element, or

portion, of the differential transmission means driven by the other of said pair of rollers for regulating the speed of said winding drum driving means, to thus maintain said speed ratio and the tension of the material being wrapped on the winding drum substantially constant throughout the entire winding operation.

2. A winding machine, including, in combination, a winding drum, a driving motor therefor, an unwinding drum, said drums having a length of material disposed between them which is unwound from the unwinding drum and wound on the winding drum, a pair of rollers, one adjacent each of said drums and which contact the material to thus be driven by the unwound and said unwinding and winding material and a varibodying my invention and I, therefore, do not an unwinding drum, said drums having a strip of material disposed between them which is unwound from the unwinding drum and wound on the winding drum, a pair of rollers, one adjacent the said winding drum and contacting the material and thus operating at a speed responsive to the speed of the material being wound on the winding drum and the other adjacent to the unwinding drum and contacting the material and thus operating at a speed responsive to the speed of the material being unwound from the unwinding drum, differential transmission means driven from both of said rollers, drive means including an adjustable transmission means and able resistor and resistance varying means therefor for controlling the field o'f-said driving mo-. tor, the resistance varying means of said variable resistor being driven either in one direction or the other by said element of the differential transmission means dependin'gon the sign of the speed difference for regulating the speed of said driving motor to thus maintain said speed ratio and the tension of the material being wound on the winding drum substantially constant throughout the entire winding operation.

3. A winding machine, including, in combination, a winding drum, a driving motor therefor, an unwinding drum, said drums havinga strip of material disposed between them which is unwound from the unwinding drum and wound on the winding drum, a pair or rollers, one adjacent each of said drums and which, respectively, contact the material to thus be driven by the unwound and wound material, respectively, a pair of drive means driven, respectively, by said rollers, diiferential transmission means driven by both of said drive means, said differential transmission means having an element responsive to the speed difference between said rollers, said drive means including an adjustable transmission means comprising oppositely disposed, substantially cone shaped members encircled by a shiftable belt, for selectively adjusting the linear speed ratio of said unwinding and winding material, and a variable resistor and resistance varying means therefor for controlling the field of said driving motor, the resistance varying means of said variable resistor being driven,

either in one direction or the other by said ele-- ment of the diiferential transmission means depending on the sign of the speed difference, for regulating the speed of said driving motor for maintaining said speed ratio and the tension of the material being wound on the winding drum substantially constant throughout the entir winding operation. a

4. A winding machine including, in combination, a winding drum, an electric driving motor therefor, an unwinding drum, said drums having a strip of material disposed between them which is unwound from the unwinding drum and wound on the winding drum, a pair of feeler rollers, oneof which is trictionally driven by the material being unwound from the unwinding drum and the other of which is driven by the material being wound on the winding drum, a pair of pulleys one driven by one of said teeler rollers and the other driven by the other of said feeler rollers, diflerential gear means driven by said pulleys, said diflerential gear means having an element responsive to the speed diflerence between the ieeler rollers, an adjustable ratio speed changing device inserted between one-oi said pulleys and said diflerential gear means and a variable resistor driven either in one dimotion or the other by the elements of said differential gear means, depending on'the sign of the speed difference, for regulating the field strength and thus the speed 0! said driving motor to thus maintain the speed ratio between the feeler rollers substantially constant thereby maintaining the tension of the material being wound on the winding drum substantially constant.

5. A winding machine including, in combination, a winding drum for winding lengths of flexible material thereon, driving means for said winding drum, an unwinding drum having, in operation, a length of flexible material disposed thereon, said material being disposed between said drums and, in operation, unwound from the unwinding drum and wound on the winding drum, means responsive to the peripheral speed of the unwinding drum, means responsive to the peripheral speed of the winding drum, a differential transmission coupled to both said speed responsive means and having an element responsive to the speed diflerence of said speed responsive means, and means, responsive to said element, for controlling the speed of the driving means for the winding drum.

HERMANN PHILIPPI. 

